Method of making a thin film magnetic head having good low frequency response

ABSTRACT

To provide a thin film magnetic head having good low frequency response, the invention teaches the use of a movable mask technique whereby a first deposited magnetic film is provided with a tapered, or knife-, edge. Gap spacer material is then deposited on the film knife-edge. Thereafter, a second magnetic film is deposited atop the knife-edge, as well as on the same substrate that supports the first magnetic film. What results, therefore, is a slant gap thin film magnetic head having good low frequency response.

This is a division of application Ser. No. 231,201, filed Feb. 4, 1983, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,479.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates in general to magnetic heads and to methods of making magnetic heads. More particularly though, the invention provides a thin film magnetic playback head having good low frequency response.

The invention, as well as the prior art, will be discussed below with reference to the figures, wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art thin film magnetic head structure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram, in perspective, which is useful in illustrating a concept of the invention; and

FIGS. 3 through 13 illustrate, in perspective, various procedural steps which are employed to produce a magnetic head incorporating the invention.

DESCRIPTION RELATIVE TO THE PRIOR ART

Whereas the high frequency response of a gapped magnetic head is directly dependent on the length of its head gap, low frequency response depends on the length of the head pole pieces which cooperatively couple with (e.g. contact) the recording medium being played. These phenomena are well known; and accordingly, conventional magnetic playback heads are made with relatively large pole pieces and extremely short gaps.

There is, currently, a trend toward the manufacture of new types of magnetic heads employing thin film pole structures and gap spacers. Representative prior art is indicated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,219,854; 4,219,855; and Re. 29,326.

Prior art thin film magnetic heads inherently have poor response at low frequencies, the pole pieces thereof being lengthwise the same as the extremely small thicknesses of the films which they employ. That this is so may be appreciated from FIG. 1 which depicts a representative prior art thin film magnetic head structure over which the invention provides improvement. In the making of a head structure as in FIG. 1, a first thin film 10 of magnetic material is deposited, by any of a variety of ways, onto a non-magnetic substrate 12. The film 10 thickness is typically about 200μ" (μ" = microinch). Non-magnetic gap spacer material 14, e.g. SiO, is then deposited over the magnetic film to an extremely small thickness of just a few microinches, e.g. 10μ". Then, a second thin film 16 of magnetic material is deposited over the gap spacer material 14, the thin film 16 being typically 200μ" thick. Electromagnetic coupling to the thin films 10, 16 may be made in any of a variety of ways, whereby magnetic signals coupled into the thin films may be converted to electrical signals.

Since, as is known, a transducer gap, in order to effect playback of signals recorded in a magnetic medium such as magnetic tape, must be oriented across the direction of relative tape travel, the head pole pieces, i.e. the films 10, 16 of the FIG. 1 head structure, can only contact the tape over a distance of about twice 200μ". This means that the low frequency response of the head structure of FIG. 1 is limited to recorded wavelengths shorter than 200μ" (Magnetic Recording, by Charles E. Lowman, McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1972, pg. 82) and, in view of the gap-defining high frequency response limitation to recorded wavelengths longer than 10μ" (Magnetic Recording, by Charles E. Lowman, McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1972, pg. 77), a playback head according to the general structure of FIG. 1 would inherently be limited to narrow band usage.

PROBLEM DEFINITION

To provide good low frequency response in a thin film magnetic head might suggest an orientation of the head thin films in the manner schematically indicated in FIG. 2. (Parts depicted in FIG. 2 having corresponding parts in FIG. 1 are primed.) With such film orientation, the low frequency response thereof would be limited by the magnetic film dimensions d; and such dimensions could clearly be as great as desired. (The high frequency response would not be different from that of the structure of FIG. 1; but clearly the film 14' regions a,b could be eliminated since they serve no transducer function.)

Orientating the films 10', 14', 16' as in FIG. 2 is, however, more easily said than done: Bearing in mind that the films 10' and 16' are deposited films (and would typically be on the same support) the possibility of depositing a 10μ" wide film c of SiO (on that same support) between the films 10', 16' is virtually nil. There is, in addition, no known way that a 200μ" (or so) film (e.g. 10') can be coated with SiO, to a thickness of 10μ", along an edge of the film 10', and then bonded to a second 200μ" film (i.e. film 16') with the SiO between the two 200μ" films, when both 200μ" films reside on the same substrate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To provide a thin film magnetic head having good low frequency response, the invention teaches the use of a movable mask technique whereby a first deposited magnetic film is provided with a tapered, or knife-, edge. Gap spacer material is then deposited on the film knife-edge. Thereafter, a second magnetic film is deposited atop the knife-edge, as well as on the same substrate that supports the first magnetic film. What results, therefore, is a slant gap thin film magnetic head having good low frequency response. Slant gap heads are well known to be operative devices, as discussed in the following references: U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,325,844; 2,543,483; 2,635,149; 2,653,189; 2,697,754; and 2,832,839.

METHOD OF MAKING A MAGNETIC HEAD EMBODYING THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 3, a non-magnetic substrate 20, lying in the shadow of a mask 22, is exposed to a source 24 of magnetic material. The source 24 deposits a film of magnetic material, e.g. permalloy, on the substrate 20 by any of several known processes such as vacuum depositing or sputtering. Film thickness control is effected by means of a timer 26.

At the moment the deposited magnetic film (31, FIG. 4) builds to a suitable thickness of, say, 200μ", the timer 26 actuates a switch 28, which applies power E to a drive motor 30 coupled to the mask 22 to position the mask. The coupling of the motor 30 to the mask is via a precision linkage forming no part of the invention. In positioning the mask 22, the drive motor 30, very slowly, and uniformly, moves the mask in the direction of the FIG. 3 arrow A for a distance, typically, of 25μ". As a result, a contoured film having a knife-edge 32 gets deposited on the substrate 20. See FIG. 4.

The structure of FIG. 4 is then coated with photoresist; exposed through a suitable mask; and photographically developed to produce the structure of FIG. 5 . . . and which figure indicates the existence of a hardened photoresist mask 34 atop the magnetic film 31.

With a suitably positioned mask 36 in place (FIG. 6), and under control of the timer 26, a 10μ" thick film 38 of SiO (FIG. 7) is deposited, by a source 39 thereof, over the photoresist 34 and the magnetic film 31. To be noted is that the mask 36 of FIG. 6 is different from (i.e. smaller than) the mask 22 of FIG. 3 in that it allows some SiO to get deposited on the substrate 20. See, in particular, the region 40 of FIG. 7.

The photoresist 34, along with its SiO overcoat, is then removed by chemical means known to the art, leaving a well 42 (FIG. 8), in the SiO film 38, that extends to the underlying magnetic film 31.

Again the substrate 20 (FIG. 9) is exposed to the film producing source 24 of magnetic material, only this time a mask 48 is employed to shield the superstructure 46 residing on the substrate 20. As a result, a magnetic film 50, topographically following the unshielded part of the substrate 20, is produced, the film thickness--typically 200μ"--being controlled, as above, by the timer 26.

At this point in the description of the inventive process, it is believed to be desirable to address the matter of "scale": In none of the figures hereof is a correct scale employed, for to do so would obscure the matter of film topography. With this in mind, it will be appreciated that the upstanding parts 52 of the film 50 only extend two ten-thousandths beyond the plane of the SiO film 38; and, as such, can (if at all) barely be felt by human touch.

Reference should now be had to FIG. 11 which shows the structure of FIG. 10 readied for contouring along the contour lines 54. Contouring may be achieved by use of either, or both, abrasive webs being run over the FIG. 11 structure, or by a suitably shaped substrate 20 to start with, and by use of complementary masks during the film deposition procedures. In any event, having produced the contoured head structure of FIG. 12, a magnetic yoke member 58 (FIG. 13), with an electrical coil coupled thereto, is connected to the FIG. 12 structure so as to complete the magnetic circuit which extends from the magnetic film 50, through the yoke 58 to the magnetic film 31 and, via a non-magnetic SiO gap 62 (i.e. the head transducer gap), back to the magnetic film 50.

As will be appreciated from FIG. 13, with relative tape-to-head travel as indicated by the arrow B, the (good) low frequency response of the FIG. 13 thin film head will be controlled by the relatively large pole dimensions (which as above noted may be as great as desired); and the (good) high frequency response of the FIG. 13 head will be controlled by the extremely small dimension of the transducer slant gap 62. The wideband performance of the FIG. 13 head, therefore, contrasts favorably with the performance of prior art thin film heads which are inherently limited to narrow band usage . . . the low frequency response of prior art thin film heads being controlled not by width, but by film thickness.

The invention has been described in detail with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, if desired, the upstanding parts 52 of FIGS. 10-13 may be lapped down; and, if desired, a non-magnetic protective coat may be applied to protect the integrity of the films 38 and 50. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method useful in the manufacture of a thin film magnetic head having good long wavelength response comprising the steps of:(a) depositing a first film of magnetic material on a first part of a substantially planar non-magnetic substrate, the second part thereof being shielded from said deposition by means of a mask, (b) during said deposition of said first film of magnetic material, moving said mask to reveal more, but not all, of said second part of said substrate, thereby tapering an edge of said first film, (c) depositing a non-magnetic film on the tapered edge of said first film of magnetic material, and (d) depositing a second magnetic film on said second part of said non-magnetic substrate and upon the non-magnetic film on said tapered edge of said first film,said two magnetic films constituting a pair of head poles, and said non-magnetic film constituting a slant gap structure between said poles.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein said mask is moved for a predetermined distance at a substantially uniform rate when the thickness of said first magnetic film reaches a predetermined thickness.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein both said magnetic films are comprised of permalloy, and wherein said non-magnetic film is comprised of silicon oxide.
 4. The method of making a thin film magnetic head structure having good long wavelength response comprising the steps of:(a) shadowing a first part of a substantially planar non-magnetic support from a source of magnetic deposition material by means of a mask, (b) depositing a first film of magnetic material past said mask onto a second part of said support, (c) moving said mask to expose more of said second part when the deposition of said magnetic material reaches a predetermined thickness, the movement of said mask being such as to be substantially continuous and being for a predetermined distance, thereby providing a knife-edge to the deposition of magnetic material on said support, (d) depositing a non-magnetic film atop said knife-edge, and (e) depositing a second film of magnetic material on the non-magnetic film on said knife-edge and on said first part of said support without depositing any of said second magnetic film on said first magnetic film,the magnetic head structure made hereby being provided with a slanted transducer gap that lies at said knife-edge between said two magnetic films. 